Police are searching today for a group of about 15 young people believed to have punched one passerby and robbed and beaten another in rapid succession on Virginia Commonwealth University's main downtown Richmond campus.

Neither victim was seriously injured in the two attacks, which happened along Shafer Street on the Monroe Park campus about 2:55 a.m.

VCU and Richmond police described the assailants as a group of 15 black males between the ages of 17 and 22.

“Last night there was a tremendous amount of activity in this area between the hours of 2 a.m. and 3 a.m.,” VCU Police Chief John Venuti said at a morning news conference.

Read the rest here. One man wasn't actually a student, he was just on campus. These random attacks seem to be happening more and more frequently. What's up with that?!? Is the campus generally a safe place late at night, Ben?

Read the rest here. One man wasn't actually a student, he was just on campus. These random attacks seem to be happening more and more frequently. What's up with that?!? Is the campus generally a safe place late at night, Ben?

Well, yes & no. I mean, the VCU Police generally do a really great job, but it's still an urban school in the heart of the city. Even the safest sections of any city aren't the best place to be at 2am sometimes. Shafer Street, from Broad to the Compass, is the center campus. Offices, dorms, lecture halls, dining center, professor offices, bookstore, restaurants, etc., itís a main throughfare. Itís the green line on the map below:

Hereís the problem: you see that red box I drew on the corner of Broad & Harrison? Thatís 534 Club. It's a primarily black club that's famous for the fights that break out there. It's had more than 1 shooting. It's not uncommon, when the clubs shut down at 2am, for the patrons to spill into the parking lot outside & there to be about 5-6 spontaneous fights.

534 shuts down at 2am. These attacks happened 20min later, 1 block away. It's just the nature of the beast sometimes.